Anadarko will own 50 percent of rights in the Fuerte Norte
and Fuerte Sur blocks in Colombian territory, Bogota-based
Ecopetrol said in an e-mailed statement today. The two companies
also won a government concession to explore for oil in the
Purple Angel block, it said. Ecopetrol didn’t provide any
financial details in the statement.

The three blocks span 1.03 million hectares (2.55 million
acres), according to state-run Ecopetrol. Ecopetrol holds other
partnerships including one with Exxon Mobil Corp. to boost
exploration in the South American country. Colombia’s largest
oil company expects to invest $80 billion in projects through
2020 to increase production to the equivalent of 1.3 million
barrels of oil a day, Ecopetrol said on Oct. 29.

Anadarko has acquired interests to explore in six deepwater
blocks in Colombia covering about 8 million acres, spokesman
John Christiansen said in an e-mailed response to questions
today. The company will collect seismic data for the next two
years at the blocks and begin drilling near the end of 2014, he
said.

Ecopetrol slipped 0.4 percent to 5,300 pesos at the close
in Bogota. Anadarko, based in The Woodlands, Texas, fell 1
percent to $74.75 in New York.

ConocoPhillips (COP) is the largest U.S. independent oil and gas
producer by market value. Independent oil companies don’t own
refineries or a chemical business.